Thursday, January 14, 2010

In my grandmother’s family, which was Norwegian, one of the specialty foods that was often served at afternoon coffee gatherings was what was known as "Hard Waffles" (as opposed to what was called "soft waffles" shown in my previous post).

These Hard Waffles were served cold, with a generous layer of butter spread on them. They would be eaten first, with cookies, shortbread, fruitcake and homemade chocolates to follow.

Here is my challenge to you: I have been unable to locate a recipe quite like this one. Does anyone know of it, perhaps under a different name? Does anyone out there have a tradition that includes Hard Waffles as a specialty treat?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waffles google "Scandinavian waffles", you'll probably find something. I have never heard these being called "hard waffels" - makes me wonder what you do with them! I'm a Norwegian, lived here all my life. They are supposed to be thin and soft, maybe you get a difference using what is technically know as a "belgian iron". Try to get hold of a Scandinavian one!

Hi!My grandmother used to make these, but since she became sick I haven't seen them around at family gatherings. Not anywhere else either for that matter. I think it's a dying treat in Norway, sadly. I will try to get a hold of my grandmothers recipe at some point.

They serve these at one of my favorite places, D Bar Desserts. When they come off the waffle iron, they sandwich homemade vanilla bean ice cream, and a cherry chutney. The hard waffle texture is much like a waffle cone, but the warm temperature makes for the perfect texture with the cold ice cream. Theirs also has a hint of cinnamon. Mmmmmm!!

I love the old recipe cards. I have a few copies of some recipes from my great grandmothers and they are such a link to my heritage.I haven't heard of these, but they sound interesting. Good luck on finding out more about them.

These sound intriguing. Hope that with all the comments, you've been able to figure out what they are called! I'm loving the waffle thing going on in all the blogs, since I recently acquired a waffle iron :) That's what they call TIMING!

I've never heard of hard waffles before (learning new things for 2010!) I love old hand written recipes -I recently found a bunch in my mother in law's collection from the 1940s! I can't wait to try these!

I didn't hear the term, hard waffles, in Norway. I do know that they usually serve their waffles cold and spread with jam or brown cheese. Heart shaped waffles are the norm. My daughter-in-law even made them at a volleyball tournament and they were a popular snack. I looked in my "Norwegian Cooking" book which noted that you should place the finished waffles on a rack to keep them crisp. Do you think they mean "crisp" waffles? They serve pancakes the same way, cold and folded in half with jam or cheese. Even on the ferries, "svelle" were a popular snack - basically a cold pancake, thinner than ours and folded in half with a filling in between. Coffee shops also featured them.

These look beautiful and delicious. I love handwritten recipe cards! I think we need to start writing them down so we aren't handing down a zipdrive full of computer files! :) - mary the food librarian

I just got back from Thailand and they sell these on the streets. If you google "Thai Waffles" you'll find waffles a lot like these. In Thailand they make them sweet, or almond or with things inside sometimes too. Yummy! Thanks for sharing your recipe!

I made this with my mom on Sunday. We were watching the Golden Globes and we had the waffle iron on the coffee table in the living room and we were cooking them as we watched. I put them out at breakfast today and my son tried one and he said, "This is a God's breakfast!" He loved them and so do I.

Have been making Torre Vafler or Dry Waffles for years. My Mom's recipe calls for vanilla, not cardamom. These are a completely different thing than the ordinary Norwegian waffles we all know and love. I roll them out to fit the waffle iron.Dough needs to be chilled to enable this, and extra flour on the board helps. Never saw them small before. Most Norwegians know English!